Weston's Valle named MIAA swimming coach of year

Tuesday

Jun 17, 2014 at 2:49 PMJun 17, 2014 at 2:49 PM

By Rick SmithSports Editor

The Weston boys’ swimming and diving team won the Division 2 state championship this year. It marked the 22nd time the Red Tide have accomplished that feat in the past 32 winters.This year’s title was particularly sweet after Weston overcame the loss of a full 90 percent of its point total from the 2013 season in graduation losses.The Red Tide saw its consecutive win streak snapped at 42 meets by an outstanding squad from Westford Academy this year. But they regrouped and charged back and won their third consecutive state championship.For that and many of reasons, Valle was honored at the Fourth Annual Coach of the Year Recognition Banquet at the MIAA Offices, in Franklin, on May 29, as 2014 MIAA Boys Swim Coach of the Year."It’s a really nice honor," said Valle. "It’s nice to be recognized by the MIAA, but I see it more as a recognition of the team."In Valle’s seven years as a head coach, the Red Tide has comprised an overall record of 179-18-1 with the boys going 96-4-1 and the girls earning an 83-14 mark."We’ve had a lot of team success," said Valle. "We have over a 100 kids in our program, we have a no cut policy. A couple of years ago, I went to the Weston High teaching staff and asked if anyone with swimming experience could dedicate one day a week to helping coach our kids. It could have been a disaster, but it has turned out to be one of the best things I’ve ever done in my coaching career."We have four core people as coaches, but we have 11 others who come one day a week full of energy, enthusiasm and commitment to the kids."Valle was a high school swimmer under the legendary Pete Foley and then was an assistant under Folz for 19 years."Pete has been a mentor to me and just about every swim coach in the state," said Valle. "He set the standard. I had a 19-year apprenticeship under Pete and I was lucky enough to watch the master at work."Valle’s teams have won four state championships and one national title. His individual athletes have won 33 state titles, 15 All-America awards and set eight state records.All those are nice, but the imprint you leave on other people is ultimately more important."After many years of working with Claude as both a teacher and a coach, I am still amazed by his passion, innovation and thoughtfulness," said assistant coach Jim McLaughlin. "He has made a lasting impact on the student/athletes he has coached and the community he has helped to grow."McLaughlin cites four of Valle’s attributes that he thinks make the team’s success possible: his communication skills, his motivational message, his ability to convey what is truly important about being on a team, and his talented assistant coaches.Valle emphasizes academics, nutrition and good sleep habits to all of his athletes. A letter from parents Bob and Shannon Burrow stated: "Nothing warms our hearts more than to have the children come home and say that they need to get some extra homework done or some extra sleep throughout the week…because coach said so."Weston relied on Valle’s deep experience this year as the team worked back from losing many seniors to graduation. According to graduate Anna Neufeld, "By placing value on swimmers of all levels, Valz inspired motivation and passion in his swimmers and was able to bring this year’s boys to an unexpected state championship."Valle stated some of the career moments that he is most proud of."I’m most proud that Weston swimmers held five out of the six state relay records at one time," he said. "To do that you have to have four really good swimmers."He also took great pride in the auto relay in which a special needs student was included in the winning group. "We got a lot of publicity for that for all the right reasons," Valle said.Like any good coach, Valle values victories, knows there are more important things involved. "Wins and losses are the outward expression of the good things on the inside," he said.